Single tank DIR - 5' or 7' long hose

[scuba_moron]

I'm on single tank and diving only in open water. Am I better off with a 5' or 7' hose?

Thanks in advance.

 

[calwolf]

I just had the same decision to make... I went with the 7' hose. I figured since I wanted to get into tech eventually, might as well buy the 7-footer and learn to use it, rather than replacing a 5 with a 7 eventually anyway. Still, there are times when it just seems a little too long. So uhm... wait for responses from others.

 

[John_B]

You are better off with the 7 footer.

That said, I have a 7 footer on my doubles regs and a 5 foot Miflex on my single tank reg. (Draw your own conclusions..)

Of course, the correct answer is to "ask your instructor"; I think they will tell you to get used to stowing the 7 footer.

 

[SDAnderson]

There is no rule that dictates a specific length - how long is determined by what you need it to do. The primary hose should be long enough so that you and your buddy can swim comfortably together during an OOA exit. In open water you will be exiting side by side and most teams can do that with a five foot hose, a few need slightly longer. If you're diving in a restricted space you may be exiting single-file, most teams find that seven feet is adequate but significantly longer is fairly common.

One consideration: though diving on the reef with a seven foot hose is probably a Rule 6 violation, it's a lot easier to stow a hose that's a little too long than it is to stretch one that's a little too short.

 

[DA Aquamaster]

Your profile does nto give any inisght into the present state of your configuration. If you are using a plate and wing, the 7' hose makes sense as even without a light cannister you can tuck the extra under the waist belt where it can still be readily deployed.

If you are still using a poodle jacket, a 7' hose can be problematic as there is no good way to store the extra 2'.

The extra lenght is nice but is not essential for open water diving. In fact in the distant past when long hoses first started being used (early 1970's, well before DIR or GUE) 5' was standard in the cave community. The lenght was increased to 7' increased as it made sharing as in restrictions easier.

 

[TSandM]

I believe GUE has standardized on the 7' hose for all diving, just to keep everything consistent. If you are talking about taking a class, I concur with contacting your instructor.

DAA is right about using the 5' hose with a standard BC. It tends to work better.

The "thinking diver" will examine the situations under which the long hose may need to be used. The key concept is "donate the primary" and the bungied backup. If you are only doing open water diving, and will never need to share gas in any restricted setting, a 5' hose will suffice (although the 7' is more comfortable).

I have 7' hoses on everything, simply because it's easier not to have different hose lengths around, but my husband uses a 5' hose on his singles rig most of the time.

 

[bluebubble1995]

The standard length octo hose has been good enough for millions of people for years so for my tropical 17# BP/W I run a 22" hose for the necklaced octo and the stock octo length hose with a 360* swivel for the primary reg. It's a very clean setup for non-cave Caribbean diving. The OOA diver has been trained to have a death grip on your BCD while using your air so I don't see the point in having 7' of hose in the way unless in you cave dive.

 

[Blackwood]

Naturally, you shouldn't be in any environments that would require a 7' hose for sharing if you are in a single tank configuration, so if you foresee problems easily stowing 7', 5' is probably adequate.

Note that with a single tank, the valve will be further (by a tank radius + half an inch or so) from the routing path than with a doubles configuration.

 

[Gombessa]

Do you use a canister light? Without one, a 7ft hose is a bit of a hassle because you'll need to tuck the extra length under the waist strap of your harness, where it can have a tendency to work itself loose. It's a minor inconvenience, but a noticeable one.

I've also found that a 5ft hose is more comfortable and manageable during regular diving, but the 7ft hose is more convenient during air share drills as it gives the team more space to work with - you're not bunched up in each others' faces.

 

[Rainer]

If you don't have a can light and don't want to uck the hose, just put a pair of shears on the right side and route under that. Works fine.

I never really got the whole 5' hose thing for single cylinder / OW dives. Quite frankly, I think the 40" hose for the primary was a better idea... In any case, I have a 7' hose on my singles rig, but that's just to standardize set ups between singles / doubles. If I was never going to go on to overhead diving, and just do OW single cylinder dives, I'd probably just stick with 40".